Chapter 165: I Will Give You a Miracle

Jiang Kai stood there, consumed by intense regret. He never expected the Allied forces to launch their offensive so quickly. Right now, across the entire defensive line, only Hu Hao’s sector was engaged in combat; everywhere else was quiet.

Jiang Kai and his staff officers analyzed the situation: the Allied forces likely intended to capture Late City first before pushing eastward. If that happened, the entire defensive line would be forced to retreat, and all of Hu Hao’s previous merits would vanish into thin air.

“Report! Commander, Li Tianyuan reports that their forces have entered Bopa City. It will take approximately another twenty minutes for them to reach Hu Hao’s position,” Sun Qinxue walked over to Jiang Kai and reported.

Hearing this, Jiang Kai closed his eyes. Twenty minutes… it was too late. Even sending an entire corps wouldn’t be enough, let alone a single division!

“Get Hu Hao on the line!” Jiang Kai ordered, his eyes still closed.

“Yes, sir!” a staff officer behind him replied heavily. The call connected quickly.

“Hello, Commander!” Hu Hao answered the phone as usual.

“I am watching the enemy’s offensive on your end. The defensive line won’t hold. Have you retreated yet? I won’t count you as a deserter. I just had Li Tianyuan dispatch a division to reinforce you; they’ve already reached Bopa City.

“Run toward Bopa City immediately! Retreat alongside Li Tianyuan’s forces! When the time comes, I’ll give you another division to command!” Jiang Kai said, his tone incredibly heavy.

“Run?” Hu Hao was genuinely surprised.

“Mm, run. You can’t hold the line anymore. The Allied forces will finish their pontoon bridges in a few minutes. Hu Hao, you are a man of immense talent; you shouldn’t die there.

“I firmly believe that once you mature, you will undoubtedly become a famous general. A famous general shouldn’t fall like this!” Jiang Kai told Hu Hao.

“Thank you for the praise, Commander. But I am not one of those young master generals; I am just a commoner’s son. I could never abandon my brothers and run away alone. Thank you for your concern, Commander. Rest assured: as long as I breathe, the position holds. If I die… then I’m sorry, Commander. I’ve disappointed you!” Hu Hao said, feeling a touch of genuine gratitude.

He never expected Jiang Kai to call him at a time like this and tell him to run. Even though it was highly inappropriate for a Commander to say such a thing, it proved just how much Jiang Kai valued him.

“Hu Hao, don’t be so stubborn! I know you value loyalty, but now is not the time for that! I imagine your brothers wouldn’t want you to die on the battlefield either. Listen to me: run immediately!” Jiang Kai urged anxiously.

“Commander, I already told you: I will not run. Furthermore, the defensive line I, Hu Hao, am guarding will not fall so easily. I can lose my life, but I cannot lose face! I have never feared war!” Hu Hao replied with absolute resolve.

“What options do you have left?! Your armored units, your infantry—they’re all committed! What else can you do? Hmm?! Retreat! Stop being so stubborn, Hu Hao!

“I value your talent! Whenever you cause trouble, I cover for you, because I know that once you mature, it will be a blessing for the civilians of the Eastern Spirit Empire! Listen to me: retreat! I order you to retreat!” Jiang Kai commanded sternly.

“Thank you, Commander. But I think, deep down, you don’t actually want me to retreat either. You hope I can win, don’t you?” Hu Hao chuckled over the phone.

“Of course I hope you can win! But I was wrong. I should have resupplied your troops sooner. In truth, if I had given you just 20,000 more men, you would have been able to hold the line perfectly.

“Your defense has been outstanding. Truly outstanding. I acknowledge that completely. But reality is reality. In this world, there is no medicine for regret. If there were, forget privately conscripting 30,000 men—even if you conscripted 50,000 or 100,000, I, Jiang Kai, would have covered for you!” Jiang Kai stood there, his heart overflowing with regret.

“Commander, just watch. I, Hu Hao, cannot lose! Ever since I learned how to command in battle, I have never lost! I cannot afford to lose that face! Are you watching with a drone right now?” Hu Hao asked.

“Yes, I am watching via drone. Across the entire defensive line, the Allied forces are only attacking your sector. The rest of our positions haven’t been attacked tonight!” Jiang Kai nodded. The staff officers in the command center all looked at Jiang Kai; they knew Jiang Kai truly cherished Hu Hao!

“Good, Commander, then just watch. By the way, did you just say our Corps Commander dispatched a division to reinforce me?” Hu Hao asked.

“Mm. They’ve reached Bopa City and should arrive at your position in a little over ten minutes!” Jiang Kai confirmed.

“I hope you can call our Corps Commander and the Division Commander leading the reinforcements. I need to take over their command. Commander, you cherish me, and I, Hu Hao, will remember that. Today, I will give you a miracle! I will show you what true combat command is! I will show you what it truly means to lay out a grand strategy to completely annihilate the enemy!” Hu Hao stood there, a confident smile on his face.

“What did you say? Completely annihilate the enemy?!” Jiang Kai was profoundly shocked. The staff officers in the command center also looked at Jiang Kai in astonishment. They didn’t know what Hu Hao was saying, but they heard Jiang Kai repeat: ‘Completely annihilate the enemy.’

“Exactly. I want command of the reinforcement troops!” Hu Hao affirmed.

“Hu Hao, this is not a joking matter!” Jiang Kai warned sternly.

“I, Hu Hao, never joke about such things!” Hu Hao replied instantly.

“Alright. I will order Li Tianyuan immediately. The troops will be under your command,” Jiang Kai agreed after a moment’s thought.

“Then that’s all for now. The battle here is getting urgent, and I need to command my troops!” Hu Hao said.

“Alright!” Jiang Kai hung up the phone and stared fixedly at the large screens.

“Hu Hao said he’s going to completely annihilate those troops?” Chief of Staff Sun Qinxue walked up to Jiang Kai and asked tentatively.

“Yes. How is that possible? Sigh! I worry that child is just acting out of spite. But… I also hope he can win. If he wins, our defensive line will be secure! The defensive task His Majesty entrusted to us will be completely assured!” Jiang Kai nodded, his eyes never leaving the screens.

“How is that possible? Hu Hao barely has any troops left! How could they possibly annihilate the Allied forces? Has the battle driven him mad?” Sun Qinxue asked in disbelief.

“He refuses to retreat. What can I do? Even if I went there personally to drag him back right now, I wouldn’t make it in time. Right, call Li Tianyuan! Order him to transfer command of the reinforcements to Hu Hao!” Jiang Kai instructed Sun Qinxue.

“Commander, how is that possible?” Sun Qinxue questioned.

“Just go issue the order! He said he’s going to give me a miracle. I hope there is a miracle! If Hu Hao loses here, the rest of our defensive line is a lost cause anyway; we’ll have to retreat immediately. And we definitely won’t be able to fulfill the defensive task His Majesty gave us!” Jiang Kai ordered firmly.

“Yes, sir! I will contact him right away!” Seeing Jiang Kai getting angry, Sun Qinxue hurried off to make the call.

Meanwhile, back at the front, Hu Hao stood at the observation port.

“Hao-ge, 3rd Regiment Commander Lu Guangsheng called! Four pontoon bridges have been completed in their sector. The Allied forces are currently charging across them. The pressure is immense!” Xiao Quan rushed over to report.

“Report! Hao-ge, Commander Wu Kexiao called! He says five pontoon bridges are completed on their end. The pressure is immense!” another senior staff officer reported.

“Tell them not to call me again until the Allied forces have completed ten pontoon bridges! For now, hold the line!” Hu Hao roared.

“Yes, sir!” The senior staff officer immediately ran back to relay the order.

“Hao-ge, the frontline soldiers are on the verge of collapsing!” Xiao Quan said anxiously, looking at Hu Hao.

“Even if they can’t hold, they have to! Whether we can completely annihilate the Allied forces depends entirely on how many pontoon bridges we have to cross over! If we don’t have enough bridges, how are we supposed to pursue them?! It’s only a few pontoon bridges right now, and they already can’t hold?! Even if they can’t hold, they must hold!” Hu Hao turned and glared fiercely at Xiao Quan.

“Yes, sir!” Xiao Quan immediately stood at attention, then ran back into the command center to call Lu Guangsheng.

“Brothers, hold the line! Hao-ge ordered us to hold until the Allied forces finish ten pontoon bridges! Once they hit ten, we counterattack! Hold the line!” At the front, Lu Guangsheng received Xiao Quan’s call and roared at his men in the trenches.

The heavy machine gun emplacements were piled high with the bodies of Eastern Spirit soldiers. Yet, soldiers continued to rush toward them. They needed the heavy machine guns to suppress the Allied forces crossing the bridges. The soldiers with rocket launchers also kept their eyes glued to the tanks and armored vehicles on the bridges. The moment an enemy vehicle attempted to cross, they fired, blowing it to pieces!

However, the Allied armored vehicles behind the destroyed ones immediately rammed them forward, pushing the wreckage into the river to keep the pontoon bridges clear.

“Kill them! Brothers!” Lu Guangsheng roared loudly. Right in front of him was a pontoon bridge. Gripping his rifle, Lu Guangsheng fired relentlessly at the bridge on the river surface.

The Allied forces had already begun crossing. On the opposite bank, the Allied covering forces laid down intense suppressing fire, hoping to pin down the Eastern Spirit troops.

But by now, the Eastern Spirit soldiers were fighting with pure, unadulterated fury. They had long since disregarded life and death. They only had one thought: Do not let them cross! Even if they do cross, I’m taking a few of them down with me!

“Hao-ge! Hao-ge! The 2nd Regiment has ten pontoon bridges!” a staff officer ran over and shouted.

“Hao-ge, the Allied forces in the 3rd Regiment’s sector have charged across! They’ve reached our riverbank! They have eight pontoon bridges over there!” another staff officer reported.

“Order the artillery: Fire!” Hu Hao stood there, tears welling in his eyes. He turned and roared into the command center.

“Fire!” The staff officers, also with tears in their eyes, echoed the command at the top of their lungs.

(End of Chapter)